Little sparkle, little flame
by LizzieOktambe
Summary: Ginny, the youngest Weasley, is about to turn seventeen. Harry, her boyfriend, would do everything for her to make this birthday happy. But is it possible to do so, when the family is still deep in grief? H/G fluff. The war mentioned, so rated T. Have fun!


**|AN|: This story I would like to dedicate to my best friend Marta.**

**Martuś. You taught me, to believe in myself. To believe, that I can do whatever I want. I wish I could ever thank you enough for that. I wish you all those things you're dreaming of and much, much more. I wish you everything what's the best on the world, 'cause I truly believe you deserve it. I hope you'll like that story more than I do.**

**With love,**

**Ela**

**|AN2|: **This should be posted tomorrow in the day of Ginny's birthday, but unfortunately I won't be at home tomorrow, so I won't be able to post it. So here it is, a day earlier, but I hope you don't mind. Enjoy!

**Little sparkle, little flame.**

The kitchen at the Burrow was dark and oddly quiet. The only source of light was the moonlight glittering through the window and a little candle sparkling on the counter. It was the middle of a night, so it's no surprise that the kitchen was empty, nearly empty. Harry Potter was sitting at the table with a glass of milk, sipping from it from time to time. It was not unusual for him to spend nights at the kitchen table instead of his warm bed in Ron's room. Today however, it wasn't because of some Voldemort- filled nightmare, but simply because he couldn't stop thinking. Luckily, dreams about Tom Riddle's terrible actions had gone along with the pain of his scar. But it couldn't be that perfect. The old ones were soon replaced with the new ones filled with pictures from the battle. Unfortunately, he was not the only one who had to deal with it.

A little commotion near the door broke him from his thoughts and he turned his head towards the source of the noise. What he saw filled his heart with strange mixture of sorrow and indescribable love. Ginny Weasley was standing at the door, her hair tangled from sleep, her cotton sweatshirt clenched tightly to her body in opposition to her baggy pajama pants. Her eyes were red and slightly puffy and a stuffed bunny was hanging from her right hand. She certainly was crying, and Harry knew exactly why. He instantly got up from his seat and approached her with open arms. She wrapped herself around him and put her head against his chest. He hugged her tightly, gently massaging her skull through her hair. A muffled cry escaped her mouth, as he pressed his lips to the top of her head, kissing that spot lightly.

"I'm sorry." She choked silently, her shaky voice muffled by his chest.

"What for?" He asked, gently bringing her head to look at him. He moved the strands of her hair out of her face and behind her ears, then brushed his thumb along the long scar on the left side of her beautiful face. She closed her eyes at the lovely sensation of his hand caressing her cheek so tenderly.

"I'm acting like a scared little girl and I hate that, but I can't change the fact that I feel like one. I'm sorry that I'm so weak and weepy." She replied silently, a few tears escaped from under her eyelids and started to make their way down her cheeks. He caught one of them with his lips and kissed it off her face.

"Oh, Gin. You're very far from weak, sweetheart." He said smiling at her warmly. "You're one of the bravest people I've ever met, and you're definitely not a weepy person." He added resting his forehead against hers. "Actually, knowing you, I was quite afraid that you'll hold your emotions inside, and believe me, it's the worst thing to do. I've been there." He confessed silently.

"I'm trying so hard to wear the brave face, but in front of you I just can't; not in front of you, Harry." She said, her eyes still filled with tears, but lighter than seconds ago. "And not in front of Bunny, obviously." She added with watery smile. He laughed softly.

"Should I be jealous?" He asked referring to the pink, quite worn stuffed bunny. She laughed and sniffed at the same time.

"Nah… I don't think so. My love for him is rather platonic." She commented. He bent his head slightly and captured her lips in a kiss filled with all the love he possessed. She returned it with equal passion.

"What was that for?" She asked running her hands up and down his back.

"First, because I love you." He said nuzzling her collar bone. She shivered. "And second, because it's your birthday," he added, finding the spot where he could feel her heartbeat and pressing his lips against it. "Happy seventeenth, Ginny Weasley!" He blew into her ear sending another jolt of shivers down her spine. He wanted so badly for this birthday to be happy for her, but he knew for sure that no matter how hard he'll try, he won't be able to make her forget that she lost her two favorite brothers. Yes, two. George was acting like he'd lost his mind lately, not wanting to talk to anybody, and even though Harry knew that he's going through hell after his twin's death, he still couldn't forgive George for making Ginny hurt so much. He may have been the only one who lost a twin, but he wasn't the only one who lost a brother, and yesterday, Harry made sure to put that into George's thick head. He'd stepped into the WWW shop and had a rather unpleasant conversation with a slightly drunk George. As much as he was sorry that he had to say all those things to his friend, he also was quite proud of himself that he did it, because maybe, just maybe, he'd managed to remind George that he also had other siblings, especially his sister, whom Harry knew for sure George loved the most.

He was kissing her again now, wishing his kisses could wipe this nightmare from her head. He knew that she'd dreamt about something horrible. She wasn't that kind of person who would cry their eyes out because of something stupid. After a moment he looked into her eyes.

"Wait here for a second, okay? And don't go anywhere." He said leaving her standing in the middle of the kitchen slightly taken aback. She collapsed on the chair across the one he was previously occupying, reached for his glass and drank the rest of his milk. She stared at the bunny in her hands. She loved that old thing so much. She'd had it since her childhood and found it in her old stuff last year, right after Harry, Ron and Hermione disappeared from the wedding. She'd slept with it every night since then, and she couldn't care less for what people would say. Nobody dared to say anything about it, though.

She felt his warm hand on the left side of her neck and covered it with her own, then his other hand placed a small box on the table in front of her.

"I wanted to give you something that could make you feel better somehow, when we'll be missing each other this year." He said silently. She titled her head to look at him.

"You don't have to give me anything!" She said shaking her head at him.

"Just open it, please." He replied sitting beside her. She tore the paper away to reveal a black velvet box. She opened it, her eyes shining.

"Oh, Harry, it's so beautiful!" She gasped, taking the silver heart shaped locket with little emeralds on the edge of the cover and one big heart shaped diamond in the center. She looked at him wide eyed.

"Are you mental?! It had to cost you a fortune!" She exclaimed loudly. He shook his head and smiled.

"I didn't buy it, actually." He said trying to make his fringe lay flat. She raised an eyebrow at him. "I found it in my parents' vault. I think it was my mum's." He said.

"Harry, I can't take it!" She said shaking her head and trying to give it back to him. He took her hand in which she was holding the locket and locked her fingers around it.

"Gin, I really want you to have it." He said staring into her gorgeous brown eyes. She opened her mouth to say something but he cut her off. "And I'm sure mum would be delighted knowing that I gave it to the person I love more than anything on the world." He added. She smiled at him, moved by that statement. "And now, I want you to open it." He said encouragingly. She found a little button and pressed it gently that made the cover to open revealing the picture of their first kiss. It was taken by Colin Creevy, and Ginny's heart tightened a little. Poor Colin. She forgot that he'd given it to Harry a few days after that happened. She smiled widely and caressed their repeatedly entwining faces with her thumb.

"I brought that picture to the photographer and asked him if he could make a copy, a smaller one for the locket." He said with a smile. She was looking at the locket with teary eyes. On the inside of the cover, engraved with fancy letters, was "Love is the strongest power there is."

"It seems I wasn't the only person who got that lesson from Dumbledore," said Harry, happily. It probably was his father's idea to put that sentence inside of the locket. She managed to tear her eyes from it and looked at him with so much love, he thought he'd never seen such a loving expression before.

"I love you," she said, meaning every word of it and came in for a kiss. Their faces met halfway and they kissed. Strangely, every kiss they were sharing was different, extraordinary, unique. After a few moments they broke apart and she stared into his eyes. They were so warm and soft, beautiful.

"That's not all." He said and took it from her, fastening the clasp behind her neck. The moment it touched her bare skin, she looked at him with shock.

"It's pulsing! Like a real heart!" She exclaimed. He grinned at her, pleased that he could see, if only for a moment, that little sparkle in her eyes.

"It took me a great amount of time, but it made it even more worth it. After a lot of consultations with our brilliant friend Hermione and searching in a couple of books, I found what I was looking for. A spell. I cast it and… it worked!" He said with amazement. She looked at him puzzled. "It will beat, in the rhythm of my heart, every single time I'll think of you." He explained. "Isn't that brilliant?" He asked with glee. She gasped open mouthed, and took his head in her hands.

"Harry. It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen, and the best birthday present I could think of." She said brushing her lips gently over his. "Thank you," she added and hugged him tightly. He breathed in her flowery scent, wishing to burn it into his mind so deeply to never be able to forget it.

"Just don't forget me when you'll be at Hogwarts, okay?" He murmured to her ear. "There'll probably be a lot of guys who would kill for one date with you." He added, caressing her back. She laughed.

"So, I think it's a good thing that everybody is quite scared of you." She commented, he laughed. "And I promise I'll hex every guy who will even try to look at me." She added.

"Oh, my. You'll probably have a lot of opportunities to practice your bat-bogey hex, then," he added, causing her to chuckle. He wordlessly got up from his seat and took her hand in his, leading her to the living room. They sit down on the couch instead, his arms around her, her head on his chest. They fit together so perfectly that he thought they were made for each other. She sighed loudly and laid down, resting her head on his lap.

"I'm more afraid about you, actually." She spoke when he started to play with her hair. "All those girls drooling at your sight..." She added shivering with disgust. He laughed.

"There is no way I'll give them a chance to be close enough to drool at me." He stated. She smiled at him. "Besides, I'll spend most of the time on my auror training, and 90 percent of trainees are blokes, so...'

"I'm quite positive that there are also a lot of blokes who would like to have a chance with you." She said with laugh. He winced.

"Thanks for that mental picture, honey." He said, disgusted. She chuckled slightly. They were sitting in a silence until Ginny broke it, opening her eyes to look at him.

"How's it possible that you're still thinking about me?" She asked cupping the locket with her right hand. He smiled widely.

"It's nearly impossible for me to not  think about you." He said stroking her nose with his index finger. She grabbed his hand and nuzzled into it, kissing his open palm.

"Come here, Harry." She said patting the pillow beside her. "I think I'll fall asleep in a moment." She stated yawning widely. He lifted her slightly from his lap and brought his legs onto the couch, lying beside her.

"Sleep well, little flame." He whispered to her ear. She smiled against his chest at that nickname and decided to ask him about it later.

"Sleep well, honey." She replied snuggling to his chest even closer. She liked the locket very much, but nothing was better than the real thing. She fell asleep listening to his rhythmical heartbeat.

"If I were you, I'd get up quickly before mum steps in and gives you a speech about etiquette and the proper behavior for an unmarried couple." Said a deep, quite amused voice right above their sleeping forms. Ginny stirred a little at that sound. For a moment, she was sure that she'd heard George's voice, but it was impossible, wasn't it. "Really, I mean it." Added that voice, and this time Ginny's eyes snapped open and she looked straightly at her brother's face. She squealed his name and unwrapped herself from Harry's arms.

"Whatsgoingon?" He mumbled waking at that sudden-and quite ungentle-movement. Ginny, in three fluid motions, got up, stepped to the couch's back and jumped in her brother's arms, hugging him tighter than ever. He nearly lost his balance.

"Whooaaah, little sis! What a surge of love!" He exclaimed loudly. He looked in Harry's direction smiling slightly, apologizing for his previous behavior. He said a lot of things that he didn't mean and would not say in a right state of mind. Harry smiled back at him accepting his apology, and went to the kitchen to give them a moment. "Last time you were hugging me like that was when you were five or something. And it was only because I didn't tell mum who ate Ron's birthday cake!" He added towards his sister. She looked at him with an odd mixture of love, anger and amusement.

"Shut it, you bloody prat!" She yelled at him and hugged him again. "Thank you. Thank you for coming back." She whispered into his ear, after a moment. He shook his head.

"I'm not the one you should be thanking." He said back into her ear. "Your boyfriend has quite a temper, I have to say," he added. She still wasn't able to unwrap herself from him.

"Harry?" She asked with disbelief. He chuckled a little.

"Have you got another boyfriend?" He asked raising his eyebrow at her. "He gave me a speech about how gitty and stubborn I am. For short, he told me to get my head out of my arse." He explained. She never loved her boyfriend more than in that moment. "And, as much as I hate it, I have to say he was right," he added. "I'm sor…"

"Don't." She cut him off. "Don't be." She repeated. "Just please, don't do that again." She added. He nodded. She ruffled his hair a little. "It's good to have you back." She commented.

"It's good to be back." He replied with a little smile. She still couldn't believe that he was there.

"And now," she said letting him go, "You go and wake the rest of our family. I have to thank my boyfriend properly." She added winking at him.

"Yeah… I don't think I want to see that." He replied happily and left the living room. Ginny felt something strange, some kind of conviction, that they'll be fine now, all of them. At least they were finally together, like family should be.

She jumped at Harry's back, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He grabbed her legs to keep their balance. Maybe she was light as a feather, but she definitely had a lot of vigor. She attacked his right cheek with kisses not knowing what to do to thank him properly. There probably wasn't a proper thing to do to thank him for such a thing.

"Did I tell you, you're the most amazing person in the world?" She asked. He turned her around, making her sit at the counter in front of him.

"Once or twice." He replied with a little smile. "I would do anything to see that sparkle in your eyes, little flame." He added staring into her eyes, now shining with joy. Finally, he thought. She was about to ask him about that nick-name, but as she found his lips at hers, she decided that this question can wait for a little longer.

From this day on, the sparkle never truly left her again. All was well.

**The End**

**|AN3|: Review, please :D **


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